The Apprentice Years
by Falcon97
Summary: A series of one-shots about Will's time as an apprentice under Halt, what happens when Will has his first drink? Or when Halt leaves Gilan at home by himself for the first time? Mainly humor but I do have some other stuff planned: hurt/comfort, angst, maybe a bit of fluffyness... Please read and review!
1. Will: There Be Spots

**Hello there and welcome to my new series of fanfics called the Apprentice Years! The basic summary: one-shots (and maybe a few two-shots) centered around Will's years with Halt as an apprentice...please review!**

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><p>Halt jerked out of bed as a piercing cry of alarm reached his ears. His hand latched onto his Saxe knife, never far away from his side, for a moment he stood crouched, bare-foot on the floor of his room, breathing fast as adrenaline flowed through his system.<p>

Slowly he began to move for the door, knife held at the ready, and opened it. Everything seemed fairly normal. The main room of the cabin was in order, just as he'd left it the night before. The door was shut and nothing seemed amiss, he frowned suddenly, a groan reached his ears, it came from Will's room.  
>Halt silently moved across the floor, and raised up and hand, pushing open the oak door that bared the way into his apprentice's room.<p>

'Will?' he asked, as the door opened, Halt blinked feeling a little puzzled, 'is something wrong.'

His apprentice was sat on his bed, his head buried in his hands, a groan tinged with despair was the only reply the grizzled ranger received.

Halt sighed and sat down on the bed next to Will, 'Would you kindly tell me what's going on? Was it you that screamed?'

Will slowly raised his head, 'Halt,' he moaned, 'it's awful.'

Halt stared into his apprentice's mournful brown eyes, 'What is?'

Will raised a shaking hand up and pointed at his chin, 'That,' he quavered.

The Hibernian leaned forward a little and scrutinized Will's chin, 'A spot,' Halt said flatly, 'that's what all this fuss is about.'

The boy stared up at him his expression bleak, and pointed to his forehead, Halt threw his hands up in a gesture of mild annoyance, 'So you have two spots, what's the matter with that exactly?'

'I'm going to see Alyss today,' mumbled Will, 'And I have spots…'

Halt arched an eyebrow as he regarded the distraught teen sat before him, he had an experience with teens before, but only once and that had been a few years back, he'd forgotten how annoying they could be.

'Halt, what am I going to do?'

He gritted his teeth, 'I doubt Alyss will mind.'

'But she will,' moaned the boy.

Any moment now he's going to start crying, thought Halt a little sourly, he didn't take kindly to being woken up so early in the morning for no serious reason.

'Can't they be removed or something?' pleaded Will, looking a little puppy-eyed, 'please do something.'

Halt eyed his apprentice, 'Just leave them for a few days then they'll go,' he turned to step out the room and go make himself a cup of coffee. Will quickly leapt to his feet and started to pluck at the sleeve of Halt's night-tunic with a worried expression on his face, 'Please,' he begged, 'Isn't there a potion or cream I can use?'

Halt, seeing he wouldn't get any peace till he gave Will something for his spots relented, 'There's probably something in the herbalists, just go in there and ask at the counter.'

He turned to make a second attempt at leaving but was stopped his tracks, 'But I can't go! What if anyone sees me?'

Halt tried to keep his rapidly fraying temper in check, 'Then wear your cloak.'

'But what if it doesn't cover my chin, then what?'

Halt drew breath to make a snappy reply but never managed to, 'What if Alyss is in the herbalists?' Will's eyes widened, an expression of shock crossing his face, 'Or what if the herbalist tells her or what if someone I know or she knows is at the herbalist and they…'

Halt's temper snapped, 'Fine then!' he growled, 'I'll go and get your potion if you promise to just shut up for ten minutes!'

For a moments the Ranger thought his apprentice was going to throw himself down on the floor and kiss his feet, instead he let out a deep sigh of relief and gazed at Halt with an expression of satisfaction on his face, 'Thanks Halt, I'll never complain or do anything to annoy you again.'

'Oh I seriously doubt that,' sighed Halt, and turned, purposefully striding in the direction of the coffee cupboard.

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><p>The herbalist looked up as the door to her shop swung open, a half-formed smile froze on her face, 'Why Ranger Halt,' she said, feeling momentarily taken aback, like all people unfamilar with the group she was wary of the Rangers, 'What brings you here this morning.'<p>

Halt stifled a sigh of despair, he'd been unsure as to how to go about this, 'Well you see, my apprentice, he has a problem…'

The Herbalist looked a little worried, everyone in Redmont was fond of Will and regarded him as "theirs" in a way, 'Oh, is it anything serious?'

'No, no, no,' Halt replied, but if Will's reaction was to be gone by it was a complete disaster, 'he just has a problem with his…urm…face.'

For a moment the Herbalist stared at the Ranger blankly before her expression cleared, 'Ah, I see, well,' she turned to scan the rows of shelves behind her, holding jars full of pastes and potions, 'This should do the trick,' she said with a satisfied air turning to display a small jar containing a cream, 'Just tell him to apply some to the affected area in the morning and evening, that should soon clear it up.'

Halt nodded his thanks and handed over the money, before the turned to leave he paused and added, 'My apprentice would be grateful if this was kept between us.'

A large smile spread across the woman's face, 'Of course, I understand perfectly.'

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><p>When Halt arrived back at the cabin his apprentice was sat at the table, his coffee stood in front of him untouched, as soon as Halt pushed open the door Will leaped up from his seat and ran over to him gabbling, 'Did you get it? Was the shop open? Did anyone see you? Did Alyss see you? How-?'<p>

Halt threw up his hands an expression of irritation on his face, 'For heaven's sake Will, let me get through the door.'

Will backed off a little but continued to gaze anxiously at him, 'Yes I got it,' sighed Halt eventually after removing his trademark cloak.

For a moment Halt was worried his apprentice was going to hug him, instead he stood there, his eyes shinning, hand held out eagerly awaiting the desired lotion for his spots, once Halt had removed it from his cloak and handed it over to his apprentice he galloped off to his room, a wide smile of delight covering his face, 'Thanks Halt,' he shouted over his shoulder and slammed the door shut behind him.

Halt didn't bother replying, he was drinking his coffee.

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><p>A little while later Will emerged from his cabin, a satisfied expression on his face, two large globs of cream clung to his face, one on is chin, one on his forehead.<p>

Halt raised an eyebrow, trying not to grin at how ridiculous his apprentice looked, instead he grunted, 'Well I hope you're feeling better, now would you please drop it about those infernal spots.'

Will gave a satisfied sigh and nodded, sinking into his chair and happily slurping at his coffee, 'All right Halt, I will.'

_One hour later…_

'Can I go now?' blurted Will, Halt had agreed to give him the morning off to visit Alyss and his friends over at Redmont, and he didn't want to be later.

Halt grunted in reply and nodded his consents, he looked up suddenly, 'Wait a moment,' he tapped his chin.

Will suddenly realised that there were two large dollops of lotion on his face, 'Oh,' he grinned sheepishly and hastily wiped them away, 'Thanks Hal…' he words died on his lips and he went a little pale, gently placing a hand on his chin, then the other on his forehead.

'Oh for…' groaned Halt, 'What is it!'  
>'They're still there,' moaned Will, the by now, all-to-familiar expression of despair on his face, 'Of course they're still there!' exploded Halt looking exasperated, 'Did you honestly think they'd disappear in just one hour?'<p>

'Well…yes,' Will replied in a small voice.

Halt ground his teeth in frustration, 'Well they don't,' he softened a little as his apprentice looked at him hopelessly, 'I don't quite see what your problem is Will,' he sighed eventually.

'What?'

'Why are you so worried about Alyss seeing you with two small spots?'

Will looked indignant, 'They're not small Halt they're huge…'

Halt cut him off sharply, 'I don't care,' he snapped, 'Listen, if Alyss is your friend she won't laugh at you, or think your ugly just because you have a spot on your forehead and chin.'

'Really?' asked Will in a small voice.

'Yes,' sighed Halt trying to resist the overpowering urge to throw his apprentice out the nearest window, 'Now go! You'll be late.'

Halt let out a pent-up breath of relief and leaned back in his chair, an expression of relief on his face as his apprentice charged out of the door calling for Tug, finally some peace and quiet.

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><p>Halt looked up, nodding a brief greeting as Will wandered into the cabin, his hair was tousled and cheeks flushed, 'Had a nice time?'<p>

'The best,' came the cheerful reply.

For a few moments there was silence whilst Will removed his cloak and slung it around the hook by the door, 'Halt,' he asked slowly.

'Hmmm.'

'What's that cream called that you brought me for my spots?'

'Not to sure, why?' Halt glanced at his apprentice.

'Oh, it's just…'

'Just what?' Halt's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

'Alyss has spots.'

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><p><strong>Like it? Hate it? Please tell me by pressing that little button down there...<strong>


	2. Will: To Celebrate Your Eighteenth

**Just a random plot bunny which popped into my head, I've kind of neglected my "Apprentice Years" one-shots for a while now so I've just suddenly come up with loads of ideas. I've got another three fanfic ideas so keep your eyes open for the next update. **

**By the way I've written a Brotherband fanfic, please go and read (for those who have read the Brotherband books) *shameless advertising***

**Please leave a review when you've finished reading *puppy eyes***

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><p>'Halt?'<p>

The person in question looked up from a report he was writing on the readiness of the Fief in the event of war, it was something that had to be done every month and he found quite monotonous, the replies were always the same, 'Yes Will?' he responded, mentally preparing himself to begin the onslaught of the inevitable questions.

His apprentice fidgeted in his chair a little, he cleared his throat, 'Well, the thing is...' he trailed off.

Halt raised both his eyebrows, 'What?'

Will let out a dry cough, looking somewhat embarrassed; in a sudden rush he blurted out, 'It's my birthday tomorrow.'

Officially Will didn't actually have a birthday as no-one really knew what day he was born on, therefore it had been decided, when he was little, to make a rough guess based on his estimated age when he was found left outside the ward.

'I know,' replied Halt, going back to his report, looking very poker-faced.

'My _eighteenth _birthday,' Will stressed the middle word.

'I know,' repeated Halt.

Silence descended on the room for a few moments, broken only by the scratching of Halt's quill on the paper in front of him. Will fidgeted in his chair in a fever of impatience.

'So,' he blurted out.

'So what?' came the blank reply.

Will felt a bit like screaming, 'Halt,' he pleaded.

His mentor raised his eyes to heaven, 'I am aware that it is your birthday tomorrow.'

Will waited in silence, eagerly leaning forward and gazing hopefully at Halt.

Halt sighed, 'So I have decided to give you the day off, albeit a little unwillingly.'

Will let out a whoop of delight and punched the air leaping out of his seat before he realised Halt was staring at him, an eyebrow raised. The apprentice quickly sank back down into his chair and cleared his throat, in a calmer voice he said, 'Thank-you Halt, I will look forward to it,' but he could help but let a massive smile break out on his face.

'Right then,' said his master briskly, placing down his quill.

Will suddenly got a sinking feeling.

'In order to make up for loosing out on a day of study I'll want you to work extra hard today,' a slightly wolfish expression crossed his face, 'starting with geography.'

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><p>It was fast approaching the afternoon when Halt finally gave Will permission to do some archery practice. Will had spent the whole morning going over map after map after map and answering numerous questions fired at him by Halt, it felt a bit like his brain was starting to seize up.<p>

As Will leaped out of the chair, snatching up his quiver and bow he breathed a sigh of relief, he hadn't been able to take much more of that subject.

As he thought of the next day he smiled broadly, he and Alyss were due to have a picnic with one another that afternoon, a romantic picnic. The weather for the next was due to very nice judging by the signs.

Will smiled again as he meditated on the next day. A sudden, mildly irritated voice interrupted his musings.

'Are you going to stand there all day grinning like an idiot or are you going to get on with your archery practice?'

Will jumped and turned to see Halt standing in the doorway of his cabin, a somewhat irritated frown creasing his forehead.

'Sorry Halt,' he replied guiltily and quickly nocked an arrow to his bow string and pulled it back to his cheek, sighting a tree some one hundred metres away; before he could shoot he heard the sound of horse hooves striking the ground as someone rode along the path leading up to the cabin. Tug and Abelard, both standing in the stable let out whinnies and an answering one came echoing back.

Will lowered his bow, turning to look. A smile of recognition lit up his face he saw who it was arriving.

'Gil!' he exclaimed, as the tall, gangly Ranger rode up to Will with a grin on his face. He quickly dismounted, shrugging his Ranger cloak back from his shoulders.

'Afternoon Will, happy birthday!' he added.

Will beamed, 'You remembered!'

'But of course,' he leaned forward conspiratorly, raising his eyebrows, 'has Halt given you tomorrow off?'

'Yes, thank goodness,' replied Will with a relieved sigh, 'I didn't think he would.'

Gilan nodded understandingly, a sympathetic smile on his face, 'I know what it's like, he was the same with me.'

A familiar voice suddenly called across the clearing, 'Gilan, I hope your not here just to distract my apprentice from his work.'

Gilan turned to grin at his former mentor who was standing on the veranda* with an eyebrow raised as he took in his two apprentices.

'Come off it Halt,' he said jovially, 'It is his eighteenth birthday tomorrow, go easy on him.'

Halt raised both eyebrows, 'Oh? Should I now?' He turned around and called over his shoulder, 'Coffee is boiling.'

As Will made to follow Gilan across the clearing Halt added, 'And Will, stable Blaze for Gilan will you? And then get on with your archery practice.'

'Ouch,' winced Gilan, handing over Blaze's bridle to Will, 'he seems to be getting tougher in his old age.'

Will grimaced, patting Blaze on her neck, 'Yes, he does doesn't he?'

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><p>Gilan sipped some of his coffee and let out an appreciative sigh, 'Ah, that's good,' he commented, glancing at his mentor.<p>

'Glad you approve,' came the response, 'now tell me, what are you doing here?'

The tall ranger shrugged a little, 'Oh, I was just in the neighbouring fief on a routine mission; I had to pass through Redmont to get back to my own fief so I though I'd drop in and wish Will a happy birthday.'

Halt glanced at his former apprentice, a slightly suspicious expression crossing his face, 'You're not going to spend the whole day distracting my apprentice from his studies are you? I have given him tomorrow off.'

'No, no, no, of course not.'

For a few brief moments there was silence as both men sipped their hot drinks. Outside the repetitive sound of a bow being released and an arrow striking a target drifted into the cottage.

'Halt,' began Gilan, 'I was wondering...'

Halt raised an eyebrow, it sounded like a request was coming; he wasn't disappointed.

'Perhaps I could take Will out for a drink this evening?'

Halt frowned.

Hurriedly Gilan continued, 'It would just be nice to celebrate his birthday with a beer, just for old times sake and all that sort of thing; I invited Horace to join us,' he added briefly.

'Wait, you've already arranged things without my say?'

Gilan looked a little uncomfortable, 'Well, I was pretty sure you'd say yes, what with it being his eighteenth birthday and all.'

Another silence descended.

'Oh come on Halt,' pleaded Gilan, 'It would only be for a little while, just as my present to Will for his birthday.'

Halt sighed and drained his mug of coffee.

'Please.'

'Oh all right!' exclaimed Halt, giving in quickly, 'As long as it's only a quick drink.'

Gilan beamed, 'Thanks Halt, you're the best.'

'Whatever,' sighed the older man wearily.

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><p><em>Ten hours later...<em>

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><p>Halt drained the last of the coffee out of his mug and eyed it thoughtfully, wondering whether or not to top it up.<p>

It had been around two hours since the young men had left for WensleyVillage and he was beginning to wonder what had happened to them. Suddenly, he heard something. He listened closely, a slight frown creasing his forehead. As the sound grew louder and closer he recognised what it was. Rowdy singing. Or, to be more specific, drunken singing.

Halt sighed, briefly closing his eyes and conjuring up images of what he was going to do to the three once he got his hands them. The Ranger slammed down his cup of coffee, folded his arms across his chest, glaring at the door and waited.

He could hear the group getting closer, he realised that they were singing Greybeard Halt at the top of their lungs, singing wasn't actually the word for it, bawling was more like it. The fact they were singing the song he hated most didn't improve his mood. Halt's expression darkened.

Now he could hear them staggering up the steps. There was a dull _thud _coupled with an _oof _as someone, Horace judging by the sound of the fall, tripped over the steps. There was boisterous laughter from Will and Gilan and then the door was flung open.

Halt watched, an expression of extreme disapproval, written all over his face and body language as Will and Gilan staggered in through the door.

Will was flushed bright red, clutching a tankard of some alcohol beverage in one hand, 'Hey Halt,' he said, the words slurring. He promptly staggered and collapsed in a heap on the floor.

Halt's eyes flicked up from his apprentice to Gilan who was very obviously trying not to laugh. Unlike Will, Gilan appeared to be in a better state.

'Gilan,' growled Halt.

'Come on, Halt,' grinned Gilan, walking across the room, he tried to navigate the cabin in a straight line but failed abysmally, almost tripping over the table, 'it was his birthday.'

Halt glanced briefly at the door as Horace appeared, the young warrior wobbled in, 'Hey Halt,' said the warrior, with a happy smile, 'the weather's great innit?' He frowned suddenly and leaned closer to Halt, narrowing his eyes, 'Wait...' he said slowly, 'you have a twin?'

'Halt has a twin?' gasped Will, 'Far out!'

Halt came to an instant decision, he grabbed Gilan by the collar and shoved him down into a nearby chair, 'I said you could go out and have a nice time...' he began.

'And we did,' replied Gilan with a smile.

'Not get roaring drunk!' yelled the ranger, his impenetrable facade slipping dramatically for a few moments.

Gilan looked hurt, 'But that's what everyone does on their eighteenth...'

'Well, it's stupid.'

Halt was silent for a few moments, glaring down at the ground, he suddenly became of a subtle, yet familiar aroma drifting from the kitchen; he looked up then let out a cry of alarm, leaping to his feet.

Will was stood clutching the coffee jar, humming to himself whilst swaying slightly, and shovelling raw coffee granules into his mouth by the spoonful, he turned to Halt who was marching across the room with a furious expression on his face.

'Halt, this is great,' mumbled Will around a mouthful of the raw substance, 'it really saves on washing up the mugs and boiling water.'

'Give that to me,' snapped Halt, snatching away his precious coffee from his protégé's clutches, 'I don't buy coffee for you to go and eat it raw like that.'

Will pouted.

'And,' continued Halt, as a worrying thought struck him, 'what is raw coffee mixed with a prodigious sum of alcohol going to do to you, eh?'

Will's face fell, 'Oh,' he said quietly, a moment of lucidity striking through the fog of alcohol which was muddling his thoughts, 'I didn't think of that.'

'No you didn't,' came the somewhat triumphant reply.

Will swallowed his final mouthful of raw coffee and stood there looking a little worried. Halt, seeing Will wasn't going to be too much trouble at the moment, turned his attention back to Horace and Gilan, the Ranger sighed, an expression of despair crossing his face.

Two of the most skilled swordsmen in the kingdom were bouncing up and down on the sofa giggling like children.

Halt gritted his teeth and rolled his eyes, trying to stifle a groan of complete and utter despair, 'Stop that!' he yelled, sounding furious.

The young men both paused in their bouncing and turned to stare at Halt.

'Why?' asked Horace, looking puzzled, 'it's fun.'

'Spoilsport,' muttered Gilan.

Halt was about to pursue the matter further when there was a pained groan from behind him, he turned around to see his apprentice doubled over, his complexion tinged with green.

'Ohh,' groaned the young man, 'I don't feel so good,' with that he quickly turned around, threw open a window, leaned out of it and was promptly sick.

'Ewww,' said both Horace and Gilan together.

Halt sighed, 'I told you it wouldn't do you any good.'

There was a startled neigh from outside the window Will was leaning out of, 'Sorry Tug,' moaned the Ranger, he slowly pulled his head back in through the window and collapsed on the ground, curled up in a ball, 'I feel awful,' he mumbled.

'You'll feel even worse tomorrow,' grunted Halt, grimacing slightly.

Horace, swaying slightly like a tree in a strong breeze, staggered over to Will and poked him the shoulder, 'Oi,' he said belligerently, his words slurring a little, 'you're not being fun anymore.'

Gilan nodded wisely, blinking a little owlishly, 'He's right, you're being boring now.'

The only reply was a stream of muttered words, Halt raised an eyebrow as he caught a few of them, he tutted silently to himself, such language; he stood there for a few moments before sighing and stepping over to his apprentice, Halt shoved Horace away from Will gently, which was a good thing as the young warrior's sense of balance was shot. Halt winced a little as he crashed over the table and landed with a solid thump on the other side, his feet sticking up in the air.

'Come on,' grunted Halt, gently pulling his groaning apprentice to his feet, 'let's get you into your bed.'

'Aw Halt,' protested Horace, who had slowly climbed back up the right way, 'I wanted to play blind man's bluff with him!'

'Not a chance.'

Horace pouted and folded his arms across his chest.

Halt dragged the still moaning Will to his room and gently guided his apprentice into his bed, he gently removed the young man's boots, cloak and knives then pulled a blanket over him. Halt stood there for a few moments, watching as the young man drifted off to sleep, he felt quite parental towards the boy and was irritated that Gilan had let Will get so drunk, and Horace as well. There would be trouble in the morning.

And sure enough...

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><p><em>The next morning...<em>

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><p>Halt staggered bleary-eyed out of his room. Mechanically he filled up a pot of water, placed it on the stove and, fumbling slightly with the firelighters, lit it up. He sighed and yawned massively. It had taken what felt like hours to get Horace and Gilan to go to sleep. He glanced briefly at the two forms slumped on the floor and sofa, snoring loudly.<p>

Gilan was sprawled across the sofa, his snores were more muted compared to Horace's thunderous ones which drifted up from the floor where Horace was lying flat out on his back. Halt smiled grimly to himself, it would be interesting when they woke up.

Halt turned his attention back to his coffee, he tipped in the granules ground from the beans and sniffed the air appreciatively as the aroma of fresh coffee started to fill the room.

His attention was diverted again by the sound of the door to Will's room creaking open, Halt turned and both his eyebrows shot up, 'Good morning, Will,' he said mildly, disguising his mixture of amusement and sympathy effectively, 'Happy Birthday.'

Will groaned and staggered over to a chair where he promptly collapsed, his face was pale and complexion pasty, his hair stood up in all directions looking unusually wild even for him, Halt wondered whether that had anything to do with the alcohol consumption, the apprentice's movements were all executed with unusual care. 'My head,' he moaned aloud.

'Well,' said Halt, sounding a little prim, 'that's what you get for going and drinking too much.'

'Ugh.'

Will felt like his brain had been sieved, then beaten with a club several times then pieced back together again. It felt like it would disintegrate if he moved his head too suddenly. Groggily, he made a mental note to kill Gilan.

Halt felt another slight, twinge of sympathy as he looked at his apprentice who was collapsed on the chair.

'Here,' the Ranger brought his apprentice a cup of coffee, 'this might help.' He also kept a small supply of medicinal herbs, rifling around in the cupboard he produced the one he was after and handed the dried substance to Will, 'Eat these,' he added, 'it might help to ease the headache.'

'This isn't a headache,' stated Will, sipping his coffee with is eyes squeezed shut and a furrow between his eyebrows as he frowned, 'this is far worse than a headache.'

'It's called a hangover.'

'Whatever, it still hurts.'

There was silence as Halt sipped his coffee thoughtfully, 'So, what are you going to do about that romantic picnic then?'

Will's eyes flew wide open with horror, 'Oh no,' he said quietly.

Halt left his apprentice to panic for a few minutes as he made his away over to the two young men, fast asleep on the other side of the room, 'Alright then!' he said loudly, 'time for you lot to get up!'

'Halt, did you have to do that?' Will said in hushed tones, sounding absolutely pitiful.

'Well, it worked,' responded the Ranger, watching with satisfaction as the two men woke up with a jerk, looking around startled. Gilan jumped so much he fell off the sofa and landed on top of Horace. There was a chorus of groans and moans as the men's hangovers kicked in.

He stood there, staring down at the two men, both of whom were clutching their heads; Gilan's hangover clearly wasn't quite as bed, judging by his less pasty complexion, but Horace on the other hand...

Halt sighed and headed for the door, grabbing his cloak, bow and arrows.

'Where are you going?' asked Will, watching his mentor with half-closed eyes.

'Shopping.'

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><p>Halt returned from WensleyVillage half and hour later, holding a cloth bag full of numerous items. Dismounting Abelard he quickly removed his horse's saddle and bridle before hurrying into the cabin.<p>

He raised an eyebrow; Will was still slumped in the chair, an empty mug of coffee on his lap. Gilan had moved back to his former position on the sofa and Horace was sat at the table, his upper body slumped across the surface.

'What's in the bag,' muttered Gilan, briefly looking over at his former mentor.

'Help,' replied Halt with a grim smile, he quickly started to pull the items out of the bag, several small bottles which were tightly corked, ginger root, a few larger bottles, bread, and even some ice.

'Right then,' said Halt briskly, 'let's get started.'

Gilan looked at the items on the table and frowned, 'Halt, how do you know so much about getting rid of hangovers?'

* * *

><p>'Will, are you sure you're alright?'<p>

Will looked up at Alyss. They both sat in the shade of an oak tree, it's low-hanging branches shading them from the main heat of the sun, it was perched on top of some hills which looked over the village of Wensley. Ahead of them was a field, left fallow by the farmers for this year, it had been eagerly reclaimed by wildlife and flowers of all description were carpeted across the area. The air was incredibly thick with the scent and the sound of insects buzzing from flower to flower. Tug was stood nearby chomping noisily on an apple, Will having brought a supply of his horse's favourite edible item.

Will shifted uncomfortably, his head was still throbbing and pounding but it had thankfully decreased, thanks to Halt's ministrations, he smiled faintly and decided not to lie, 'Well, I do have a bit of a headache.'

Alyss shifted her position, moving closer to Will and gently placed a cool hand on his forehead. Will suppressed a smile and did his best to look pitiful, it wasn't hard, he just brought back the memory of what it was like to have an early-morning hangover.

'Would you like me to go and get anything for you?' asked Alyss gently, wrapping an arm around Will's shoulders.

The ranger apprentice looked nonchalant, not wanting to have the contact broken, 'Oh, I'll be fine.'

Alyss smiled, 'Happy birthday, Will,' she leaned in closer to her boyfriend and kissed him on the lips.

Will promptly forgot his headache and almost everything else, his head swam a little and when they did finally pull apart he sat there in a bit of a daze for a few moments.

Alyss grinned, she gently removed her hand from around Will's shoulders and pulled the picnic hamper closer, she unbuckled the wicker basket and pushed back the lid.

Will leaned forward slightly, in eager anticipation; he was aware that Alyss had asked Jenny to bake some of the items contained within and his mouth watered at the thought.

His girlfriend brought out the plates, cups, knives and forks, placing them on the rug they were sitting on. With a smile she reached into the basket again and produced a bottle of wine.

Will froze.

'Seeing as it's your birthday,' started Alyss, 'I thought I'd buy us some lovely red wine, after all, you're allowed to get a little tipsy on your eighteenth birthday.'

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><p><strong>*No, I'm not spelling it wrong, the word can be spelt verandah or veranda (the latter is a British spelling judging by how Microsoft Word is reacting)<strong>

**And the moral of this story is...well...figure it out for yourself XD**

**Please note that I _don't _have any experience of a hangover and being drunk (just to clarify).**


	3. Will: Beards and Apprentices

**This idea just came to mind suddenly. My brother is learning how to shave and so naturally, I thought of Will XD**

**Sorry for the long gap between this and my previous update, that is what school does to people ;)**

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><p>Will yawned massively as he opened his eyes. For a moments he lay there in bed, savouring the warmth of his blankets. Glancing to his left he could see that his window pane had spindly lines of frost and ice reaching across it. The air was cold, very cold, Will was a little suprised that his breath wasn't steaming up. Shivering slightly he swung out of his warm bed.<p>

The cold immediatly penetrated his thin nightshirt and trousers. Hastily, he pulled on his warm winter tunic and trousers and hurridly moved onto dragging his boots over his feet which were rapidly loosing heat after contact with the cold floor.

Now he was dressed he could move onto the business of actually fully waking himself up, yawing he rubbed his eyes and blinked blearily, as his hand brushed his chin he froze. He felt his chin, more firmly this time.

The effect was quite something

Will leaped to his feet all vestiges of sleep gone in an instant. The apprentice ranger hurled himself towards the door of his room, his feet getting tangled slightly in his blankets which had been carelessly thrown onto the floor in a heap. With a resounding _thump _he hit the ground, all air promptly driven out of his lungs. He lay there on his belly for a few moments trying to get some air back into his body then resumed his mad scramble for the door. Will burst out of his room in a spetacular fashion, the door hurtling back on it's hinges and crashing into the wall.

Halt, who was as usual, awake before him, was stood in the kitchen cooking breakfast and sipping coffee. He stared at his apprentice with a bemused expression on is face for a few moments; raising a single eyebrow he gestured to Will's door and commented mildly, 'Would you please not do that? It can't do the door any good.'

'Sorry, Halt,' came the reply, Will looking suitably chastened, he then resumed his slightly mad dash heading for the small room located off the cabin which housed a basic tin bath, toilet (well, more like a pot really) cupbord and more importantly...a reflective surface.

Will charged into the room, came to what almost turned into a sliding halt in front of the gleaming piece of metal which they used in place of a mirror, (which would have been an impressive feat taken into account the floor was wooden and the boots he was wearing) and gaved eagerly at his reflection, pressing his face up close to the reflective surface.

There was an excited yelp of delight from him and Halt poked his head into the small room, a puzzled frown creasing his forehead, 'Will, what are you doing?' asked the puzzled ranger, though, to be honest, he was beginning to get used to his apprentice's often strange habits.

Will tunred to Halt with a broad grin on his face, his brown eyes glinting beneath his unruly mop of hair, which looked even more unruly than usual, 'Look!' he exclaimed and pointed to his chin with an air of delight.

Halt frowned and eyed the young man's chin intently, clearly it wasn't another spot (thank goodness) or Will wouldn't be acting so delighted, after a few moments spent eyeing the chin in question Halt looked inquiringly at Will, a single eyebrow raised.

'I don't quite see...'

Will looked exasperated, 'I'm getting a beard!' he exclaimed looking inordinantly pleased with himself.

Halt stared at his apprentice with an expression of utter disbelief on his face for a few moments. Now that Will mentioned it he could see a few dark whisps of hair beginning to show on his upper lip and chin, barely visible though.

'Well,' he said eventually, 'you'd better be careful it doesn't grow too long or you might trip over it.'

Will nodded solemnly for a few moments, missing the sarcasm then his eyes narrowed as it suddenly clicked, 'Oh, very funny,' he huffed, with an air of injured dignity.

Halt grinned to himself and went back to the kitchen to continue breakfast.

* * *

><p>'Must you do that?'<p>

Will glanced at Halt inquiringly, they were going through the courier's messaging system and Will was struggling to retain it.

'Must I do what?'

Halt sighed wearily, 'That,' he said sharply as his apprentice slowly stroked the wispy hairs on his upper lip with a thoughtful expression on his face as he gazed at the papers in front of him.

Will paused and lowered his hand reluctantly.

Halt sighed, 'So,' he said in a wearied tone of voice, 'how would you write down your name using code then?'

Will hunched over a blank piece of paper and scribbled down a few letters under Halt's critical gaze. Halt's eyes sharpened as he saw his apprentice's hand slowly creep up to his upper lip again.

'Will,' he said tightly.

His apprentice hastily lowered his hand but judging by the slightly hunted expression that crossed over the younger man's face the temptation to raised his free hand again must have been immense.

Halt sighed, he was pretty sure he never had this with Gilan, after a few moments of mentally re-visiting the past he quickly shrugged away that thought, he had and it had been worst than this.

However, a more cynical side of his mind seemed to say that it was going to get a lot worst.

* * *

><p><em>One Week Later...<em>

* * *

><p>Halt looked up as Will strode out of his room with his head held high and a jubilant expression on his face. The older ranger sighed quietly. He had a feeling he knew what was about to happen.<p>

'Halt,' announced Will grandly, sitting down at the table, 'I'm going to grow a beard.'

Halt raised an eyebrow and stared thoughtfully at his apprentice, a critical expression on his face. Over the past few days, Will's face had suddenly sprouted a great deal of facial hair (well, not a great deal, but considering it had only been a week since it had first started growing...)  
>A rough and maybe somewhat patchy growth of stubble had come out on Will's lower face, which, coupled with his morning hair, made him look something close to a wild cave man.<p>

Halt had noticed that this stubbly hair had also made Will attract a few puzzled and cautious gazes from various people in Redmont when he wasn't wearing his hood, Halt grinned inwardly as he looked over his apprentice again, he did look a bit...suspicious.

Halt opted out for a more cautious and tactical response as his apprentice gave him an expectant look, 'Don't you think it might be a bit early for that Will?' the Ranger said mildly.

Will looked confused, 'What do you mean?'

'I mean,' replied Halt with an air of wisdom, 'that if you want to grow a beard, you should really wait until the hair can grow more thickly.'

'It is going thickly though,' said Will with an injured expression on his face, rubbing a hand over the scruffy layer of stubble.

Halt said nothing but just stared at his apprentice's "beard" with a doubtful expression on his face. Clearly, Will thought it was thicker than it was. He sighed inwardly, 'Don't you think you'd look better without the beard?'

Again, his apprentice looked puzzled, 'But girls like beards...'

'Really?'

'Yes Halt,' sighed Will in a patronising tone of voice.

Halt frowned getting the message running under those two words, which was essentially "keep up with the time old man". He sniffed and returned his attention to the road ahead, deciding there and then not to pay attention to his apprentice's appearance anymore.

* * *

><p><em>Another week later...<em>

* * *

><p>Will rubbed his chin and a pleased expression crossed his face. In two weeks his stubble had grown surprisingly fast and, judging by the feel of it, had attained a reasonable degree of thickness.<p>

Will's attention suddenly snapped back to the present, his mentor was crouched in the undergrowth, partially concealed behind the trunk of a thick oak tree. Will couldn't see his face but he knew that Halt was glaring at him.

Guiltily, Will slowly resumed belly-crawling around the shrub surrounding the edge of the small clearing he and Halt were stationed at.

Their objective was to re-capture an escaped convict. He was on trial for theft and murder but had escaped custody during a transit from one prison to another. Will and Halt had been tracking him for the past morning, thankfully he hadn't covered much ground and wasn't an expert in stealth and evasion. They'd come across his camp just after noon and were now in the process of surrounding him. The plan was that Will would go to one side of the clearing whilst Halt stayed on the other, then step out with their bows armed and order him to stand down and surrender. Simple but effective.

Will had by now reached his position and waited for his mentor to get into position. He could see the convict, he was crouched by a small fire roasting an unfortunate rabbit over it, facing Will. Will looked at the man, noting his hair was in need of a wash and trim. The young Ranger noticed also, that he had a thick and rather impressive-looking beard.

Inadvertently, Will raised a hand to rub his beard as he'd been doing for the past few days.

The movement was slight, but it was enough. The convict had been facing Will and clearly was the movement and it that moment knew he had been found. With a reckless abandon he leaped to his feet and started to run in the opposite direction to Will.

Will let out a strangled yelp of alarm and scrambled to his feet, however, his legs got hopelessly tangled up in his cloak as he did so and the young apprentice collapsed face-first into the group. Unfortunatly it had been raining the night before and the ground was somewhat muddy.

Eventually he staggered to his feet, still clutching his bow, blinking he quickly focused on the area where he'd last seen the convict. Will winced and quickly looked away, staring at his feet as if they were the most fascinating things he'd ever seen.

Halt was stood on the opposite side of the clearing, at his feet lay one very unconscious convict. That didn't bother Will what did bother him was the dark expression on his mentors face and the folded arms.

There was a long silence.

'I think it's time you shaved,' stated Halt icily.

Will shuffled awkwardly from foot to foot and mumbled an incoherent sentence.

Halt raised both eyebrows, 'What was that.'

His apprentice looked up, his cheeks flushed red under the liberal coating of mud on his face, 'Yes, Halt,' he said in a guilty voice.

'Good, I'm glad that's sorted,' with that Halt turned around on the spot and strode off into the woods, calling over his shoulder, 'You can sort that out,' gesturing to the prone heap on the floor.

Will sighed and got to work.

* * *

><p>'Do I have to?'<p>

'Yes.'

'But Halt...'

'I don't care!' thundered Halt, glowering at his apprentice, 'Just get into the washroom and trim off that pathetic excuse for a beard!'

Will sighed glumly and trudged off in the direction of the washroom, mournfully running a hand across his "beard". He paused as a thought struck him, 'What do I use to shave?' he asked glancing at Halt.

Halt felt a momentary surge of relief, he'd been bracing himself for outright refusal in which case he would have pinned his apprentice down to the floor and shaved him himself. 'You have a knife don't you?'

'Well, yes, but...'

'Then go,' Halt made a shooing gesture.

Will sighed and slunk into the washroom.

His mentor listened for a few moments and heard the familiar sound of steel sliding from a scabbard. He made a satisfied sound and sat down in his chair, finally his apprentice was getting rid of that infernal facial hair.

* * *

><p>Will held his knife in one hand and stared at it uneasily.<p>

He wished he had a mirror or some reflective surface, an idea suddenly struck him. He charged out of the small washroom, past a bemused Halt, into the kitchen, grabbed a pot and ran back past the bemused stare and into the washroom. With a triumphant grin, Will brandished the gleaming pan and gazed eagerly into it. His reflection came out somewhat distorted but it was the best he could have.

With an air of sadness and regret Will raised his knife to his cheek and pressed the cold metal against his skin. Slowly he pressed it down and ran the knife through the hair, wisps of it floated down to the floor. Will gave a slight smile, that wasn't so bad, he remember that in the past someone had said that shaving could be painful, he had no idea where that came from, this was easy...

The thought instantly evaporated as the knife snagged on his skin. Will let out an anguished yelp as blood started to trickle out of the cut. He quickly grabbed a nearby towel and feverishly dabbed at the area on his cheek.

Once the bleeding seemed to have stopped Will lowered the towel and peered at his reflection in the gleaming pot. He could see there was a raggedy area of bare skin amidst the beard on his face. It looked ridiculous, Will grimaced, he was committed now, he couldn't go around looking like that, he had to shave the whole thing off.

Taking a deep breath he place the knife back on to his cheek and dragged it down.

* * *

><p>From his comfortable perch on the chair Halt listened to the strange sounds drifting from the washroom, a mixture of yelps and grunts greeted his ear. He raised his eyebrow as he caught a particularly strong word then silence fell.<p>

Halt waited.

The door separating the washroom from the rest of the house slowly swung open and Will emerged.

Halt tried hard not to laugh or let any amusement show on his face. Instead he just stuck with saying lightly, 'Well that looks better.'

Will gave his mentor a pained look and sat down. The beard was gone but now his face was covered with minor nicks and scratches, Will groaned softly and clasped his cheeks in his hands.

'Why didn't you tell me it would hurt?'

Halt raised his eyebrows, 'Will, you're a Ranger, how can a few nicks and scratches hurt?'

'But now my face is sore.'

'Get used to it,' replied Halt unsympathetically, 'I expect you to shave twice a week now until you can grow a proper beard; I'm not going to have my apprentice wandering with a pathetic excuse for one.'

His only reply was an anguished groan.

* * *

><p><strong>Hmm, ending sounded a bit stunted, never mind :) Hope you guys enjoyed it.<strong>

**PS. WHO HAS READ THE ROYAL RANGER? I loved it :D True I was a bit miffed with some parts, (seriously Flanagan, all this time I've been saying Will opens a door from his bedroom when it's a CURTAIN! ) **

**Ahem, anyways, please review, I do love it when people review :)**

**Hopefully the next update won't be so long, but unfortunately, my school does like to pile on the homework :/**


	4. Will: Magic Mushrooms

**Just an idea I had as a one-shot. Somewhat OTT and OOC as I have a feeling Halt would have taught Will how to spot inedibleish mushrooms. Not very realistic either as I doubt that hallicinations caused by eating mushrooms actually works this way (so I'm not actually speaking from experience, just to clear that up).**

**Disclaimer: If you do decide to go out and pick random mushrooms as Will did I have no part in the matter. Please note that picking random mushrooms and cooking them is not very good for your health (in particular if they are ones with hallucinogec properties and/or cause death or severe pain). So just beware of the mushrooms...  
><strong>

**Keyboard cookies to whoever spots the Hobbit reference XD**

* * *

><p>Halt sipped appreciativly at his morning coffee and leaned back in his chair eyeing the various offical documents before him with an air of something close to distaste. He had never enjoyed the paperwork, in fact, he was yet to meet a Ranger who did. He sighed and took a sip of the bitter brew, trying to summon up the enthusiasm to get started on it.<p>

Just as he was beginning to rifle through the small stack of papers he heard the door to Will's room creak open then swing shut.

'Morning Will,' said Halt, without looking up, 'coffee's on the stove.'

He glanced up briefly at his apprentice, watching the teenager amble over to the pot of coffee with a bleary-eyed expression on his face, the grizzled Ranger arched an eyebrow as he saw the state of his apprentice's hair, he made a mental note to get the lad to cut it sometime. Yawning hugely Will poured himself a cup of coffee then mechanically began to spoon in the honey, Halt raised his eyebrow again as he saw the amount his apprentice was putting into the cup, naturally forgetting the amount he had a tendency to put in.

Halt waited for his apprentice to sit down when he did (actually, it was more of a slump) he shoved aside and letter and leaned forward, placing his elbows on the table. Will looked up and paid attention recognizing that his mentor was about to give out the day's instructions.

'Will,' said Halt, 'I'm going out for a few hours today, I'll be leaving come noon and I'll be back for tea.'

Will nodded and raised his coffee cup to his lips, the caffine was by now beginning to wake him.

Halt however hadn't finished speaking, with an edge to his voice he continued, 'And I will be leaving you to cook the dinner.'

Will paused, his cup a few centimetres away from his lips.

His mentor was silent for a few moments, briefly considering the wisdom of leaving Will alone to cook the dinner, it wasn't something he had done before and he remembered the first time it had happened with Gilan...

'So,' carried on Halt quickly as the memories came back of that fateful day, 'I don't want you setting fire to the kitchen or burning down the house, if you don't mind.'

Will nodded, the coffee cup still frozen, suspended in it's arc towards his mouth.

Another thought occured suddenly to Halt, 'And I don't want you negelecting your training either,' he considered briefly waiting around undercover for a little while to make sure his apprentice was going to actually train and not just lounge around the cabin with his feet up and get through the whole coffee supply.

Will nodded, his expression one of total (potential) obedience, 'Yes Halt.'

Halt still hesitated, 'Just be careful with the stove,' he stopped, realising he was sounding at little bit too protective.

'I'll be fine Halt,' said Will cheerfully.

'Right,' said Halt, brushing aside (almost) all of his doubts, 'of course you will.'

* * *

><p><em>That afternoon...<em>

* * *

><p>Halt grabbed his cloak of the hook by the door and slung it on, throwing aside the flap covering his quiver which he wore underneath his cloak, even though it was very unlikely anything should happen on his way to Redmont Castle he knew better than to become complacant.<p>

He turned to his apprentice who sat staring at a map of Redmont Fief with glazed eyes.

'Make sure you've memorized it by the time I get back,' said Halt trying not to smile at the expression of boredom on Will's face, 'geography is very important,' he added sensing the need to continuously drive that point home.

'Yes Halt,' came the reply, though there was a note of doubt there.

'And another thing, please leave me some coffee,' Halt sensed that he would return and there would be no more of his precious supply left if Will was left to his own devices with the brew.

'Yes Halt,' repeated Will.

Halt stood there on the threshold of the doorway for a few moments before mentally slapping himself, he was acting like a worried old mother hen. Briskly he turned, 'I will see you later then, Will.'

He heard the murmured reply as his apprentice looked up again from the map.

With an air of finality the ranger pushed the door closed and marched down the steps, whistling for Abelard, he'd saddled the horse a little earlier so all that needed to be done was to tighten the girth or the result could be a little awkward if it was left loose.

Halt shot a last, quick glance over his shoulder at the cabin.

_Everything will be fine, you're just over re-acting._

Halt glanced at Abelard who was staring closely at him, 'You think?' he asked his horse with a wry smile.

Abelard snorted Y_ou are such a worry-wort._

'And with good reason,' responded Halt swinging up into his horse's saddle, 'don't you remember what happened the first time I left Gilan alone to cook the dinner?'

His horse made a strange whickering sound, pretty much the equine equivelant of a laugh, _how could I forget? If Gilan hadn't burnt his hands you would have made him sleep up that fir tree._

Halt grinned a little at the memory, it had taken a few months before he had regained the nerve to let Gilan loose in the kitchen again.

_Besides, Will is a better cook than Gilan, I'm sure he'll be fine._

Halt sighed, 'You're right, I'm worrying about nothing.' He straightened up in the saddle a little, 'I have nothing to worry about,' he said with a more confident air. Though, as he rode further and further away from the cabin, Halt couldn't help but feel something wasn't quite right.

* * *

><p>Will peered cautiously out of the window, he watched as his mentor rode off, mounted on Abelard, through the trees and down the path leading through the woods to Redmont Castle.<p>

As his mentor was lost to his sight he breathed a quiet sigh of relief and turned to stare at the map on the table with some disdain. For a few moments, he stood there, weighing up what he should do.

Leave the map? Study the map?

He chewed his lip, undecided, eventually he came to a decision, he marched past the map and grabbed his cloak, quiver and bow off the hook by the door and marched out. It was a lovely day, he thought, so he may as well practice some archery, what with the Gathering coming up.

Will leaped down the steps and stood in the centre of the clearing, he could do the map reading when he had finished practicing archery, after all, that was the most important part of being a Ranger, wasn't it? There were a few misgivings still in his mind but he shrugged them off, at least he was still practicing some of his skills.

Decisivly he plucked an arrow from his quiver and placed it on the string of his Longbow, Halt had given it to him after he had grown out of his recurve bow, the Longbow wasn't anyway near as big as Halt's but it was still capable of a powerful shot.

As Will began to fire his first few shots he quickly shrugged off any remaining misgivings about procrastinating over his geography, he would do later.

He would.

* * *

><p><em>Three hours later...<em>

* * *

><p>Will yawned, stretched out lazily in Halt's armchair, a mug of coffee in one hand and a map of Redmont Fief on his lap. The former he sipped with an air of ecstacy, he latter he eyed with an expression of extreme distaste.<p>

He had spent the last three hourse practicing archery, stealth, knife defence, unarmed combat, tracking and tree-climbing, everything in fact apart from geography.

'I suppose I had better get on with the dinner,' he remarked to himself, seeing how the shadows were beginning to lengthen, 'I can do this while it's cooking.'

He nodded to himself, satisfied that he had a plan.

The apprentice swung to his feet and quickly brushed out the chair, hopefully his mentor wouldn't notice he had been sitting on it.

Will wandered over to the store cuboards and opened them all. Taking a step back he stood there and eyed what little food remained in them. It was the day before the two rangers were due to stock up again of food and little remained. The apprentice eyed the few ingredients with a woeful eye. There was hardly anything. Just a few small carrots, basic seasoning, some wine, bread...

And idea suddenly hit him, he knew that there was quite a large number of mushrooms around the back of the cabin, growing in the shady, damp area under the trees. Halt had taught him a little bit about foraging for mushrooms in one of their fieldcraft classes. Pleased that he had come upon an idea for a good dinner Will snatched up a wodden bowl from under the work surface and hurried out of the cabin.

Once at the wooded area behind the cabin Will looked over the assortment of mushrooms growing. He chewed his lip. Suddenly, he wondered whether this was a good idea, the large variety of the fungi growing was a little overwhelming. Quickly, he shrugged off his misgivings, he would be fine.

_What are you doing?_

Will turned around from his position (which was kneeling on the ground) to see Tug standing behind him, looking a little quizzical, which was an interesting expression for a horse to wear.

'Picking mushrooms,' said Will with a triumphant air as he tugged up a particulary big one.

Tug snorted doubtfully, _Aren't some mushrooms poisonous?_

'Well...yes, but I've been taught about that sort of thing.'

The small horse made a harrumphing sound, still not looking convinced.

Will sniffed, 'Look, I'm a Ranger, I know about this sort of thing; anyway you're a horse, you don't eat mushrooms.'

_With good reason, some mushrooms are poisonous._

'Well these aren't.'

_How do you know?_

There was a moments silence.

'Halt taught me to identify which mushrooms are poisonous,' Will said eventually, he refrained from mentioning that it had only been a brief lesson, but he was still fairly confident that the species he was picking was edible.

Tug eyed the bowl of mushrooms with an air of some misgiving, _Well, you go ahead and eat them, I'll stick with grass and apples._

'You do that,' Will suddenly frowned, 'what apples?'

Tug whickered nervously and quickly turned around and trotted off leaving Will kneeling there staring after his horse with a suspicious expression on his face.

After a few moments the teen turned back to his haul and looked at it with a pleased expression on his face, 'Right then,' he said eagerly, 'time to start cooking.'

* * *

><p>Will pulled the lid off the pot and sniffed appreciativly at the fragrant aroma's which driffted out from the pot. He unconsciously licked his lips as he eyed up the soup which was bubbling away.<p>

Will looked up and then promptly jumped out of his skin as he saw a large brown eye staring in through the open window.

'Don't do that,' he said exasperated, 'you almost gave me a heart attack!'

Tug snorted, poking in his nose through the window and sniffing at the soup, _You're supposed to be an all-knowing Ranger, competley aware of your surroundings._

Will glared at his horse, 'Get your face out of the house, Halt would send you back to Old Bob if he saw you doing that.'

Tug eyed Will balefully, _Well Halt's not here and it would appear that both of us are taking advantage of that fact._

'I don't know what you mean,' came the prim reply.

_Geography, _came the fateful response.

'Get out of here,' sighed Will, swatting Tug lightly over the nose, he felt a twinge of guilt that he hadn't done his geography, Halt would be annoyed. He stood there, shifting from one foot to the other a little uncomfortably for a few moments.

Oh well, he thought with a shrug, he'd do it right after he had some soup...

* * *

><p>Halt cantered Abelard down the small forest path winding up to his cabin. He sniffed the air, the frangrant smell of cooking driffted on the breeze, mixed with a subtle smell of woodsmoke. He sighed quietly with relief, it was only a subtle smell and not accompanied by burning which meant that the cabin was (hopefully) still standing.<p>

As the two came in sight of the cabin Halt had to stop himself from letting out a quiet sigh of relief. His house was intact.

_Told you, _said Abelard, sounding a little smug, then, _you owe me an apple._

Halt raised an eyebrow, 'Oh do I?' He dismounted easily and smoothly took off his horse's rein and saddle. Abelard shook himself in that funny vibrating manner then let out a brief whinny of pleasure.

'Oh come off it,' said Halt with a slight smile, 'you've hardly been in it today.'

_Well, I've been in it for long enough, thank-you._

Halt rolled his eyes and turned away, quickly stashing the bridle and saddle in the corner of the stable.

'Hello Tug,' he said, seeing the stocky horse standing there, he gave Will's horse a brief pat on the neck, 'Will been doing his homework?'

Halt wasn't competly sure but he had a sense that there was some doubt emenating from Tug.

His expression darkened, 'If your Ranger has been slacking off homework, there will be trouble.'

Tug let out a long neigh, it sounded almost like he was laughing.

Halt turned and exited the stable, striding across the clearing then quickly walked up the steps to his cabin. With another appreciative sniff of the fragrant aroma's drifting from within he opened the door.

'Hello Will-' he words were adruptedly cut off as the Ranger froze in the doorway.

His aprentice was sat cross-legged on the floor surrounded by a chain of daisies and singing to himself. As soon as he saw Halt, Will lept to his feet and flung his arms around his mentor's waist. '

'Halt!' he gasped, 'you're back! I missed you so much!' he giggled like a four-year old and Halt noticed that his pupils were strangely large, before he turned around and started skipping, and he was literally skipping, across the floor of the cabin to the kitchen area.

'I saved you some soup!' he exclaimed bounding over to Halt with a bowl full of the substance.

Halt slowly closed the door, 'What is the matter with you?' He cautiously took the bowl off his apprentice and eyed it suspiciously.

Will giggled, 'I'm just so happy!' he skipped around the cabin singing for a few more moments before sitting down on the floor, he grabbed a section of the daisy chain and placed it on his head, 'Don't I look pretty?' he asked Halt with a massive smile of his face.

The dumb-struck Ranger just stood there, staring at his apprentice with an expression of undisguised astonishment on his face.

Will suddenly ceased rocking and stared up Halt, 'Can I plait your beard?' he asked looking hopeful.

The words struck Halt out of his reviere. He cautiously stepped around Will and marched over to the kitchen; placing down the bowl Halt eyed the ingredients that Will had used. He could see that the vegtables had been used up, but this soup was mushroom and they didn't have any mushrooms...  
>Halt got a sinking feeling, he sighed deeply and turned to Will who was by now performing a duet with an invisible bird.<p>

'Will?' he asked, 'where did you get the mushrooms?'

'They came down from the sky,' he shrieked, then collapsed backwards giggling hysterically.

Halt's eyes fell upon the bowl which Will had used to gather the mushrooms, there were a few stray ones left in there, Halt picked one up. He sighed, quickly putting two and two together.

'Will,' he said patiently, too patiently in fact, 'what did I tell you about forgaing?'

Will pushed out his bottom lip and made exagerated sighs as he tried to think of the answer, 'It's really good for your health?'

'No, I said that you shouldn't pick anything that may potentially be harmful, and this is especially true for mushrooms.'

'They've addled his brain and yellowed his teeth!' yelled Will, then burst out laughing again.

Halt stared at his apprentice, rolling on the floor hysterically, sighing the quickly poured the mushroom soup out the window and tossed the remaining mushrooms out after it.

As he brushed off his hands, Halt became aware that the room had gone quiet, Will was no longer laughing. He turned to see his apprentice staring at him, an expression of devestation on his face.

'Halt,' he said miserably, 'why did you pour my creation out the window?' his bottom lip trembled, 'didn't you like it?'

Halt winced, he hadn't forseen this.

Will suddenly stiffened, 'I don't like you anymore,' he said with an air of finallity, 'I'm leaving,' he spun around and marched, stiff-backed out the door.

Halt stared blankly after Will for a few moments, then, with a sigh followed him, 'Better make sure he doesn't do anything stupid,' he sighed to himself, ruefully he thought of the dinner he would never have, he had been looking forward to sitting down to that after a hard afternoon's work.  
>As he stepped outside he paused and looked quickly around, 'Will?' he called into the darkness, 'where are you?'<p>

The answer came in the form of a long, drawn-out and unmistakeably human impression of a wolf howl. Halt turned around and his eyes widened, his apprentice was stood on the roof of the cabin, howling at the moon.

'Great,' he sighed, now what?

Abelard and Tug trotted up behind him, Halt turned to glanced at Abelard and raised an eyebrow, 'See, I told you something would happen.'

Abelard seemed to shrug, _Well, he didn't burn down the house, I suppose that's something._

'Yes, but now he thinks he's a werewolf for goodness sake!'

Halt flinched as Will suddenly slipped on a particulary damp tile and lost his footing, he watched, helpless, as his apprentice started to slide down the roof, slowly gathering speed.

Tug let out an anxious whinny and Abelard shifted nervously from hoof to hoof.

Will however, didn't seem to be worried at all, he let out a loud laugh and giggled, 'Wheeeeeeee!' he exclaimed as he went flying off the roof and landed with a solid _thump _on the ground.

Halt winced and hurried over to his apprentice, suspecting that he had at least broken an ankle, instead, his apprentice leaped to his feet with a whoop, 'Did you see that!' he shrieked, 'That was awesome!'

Halt sighed, 'Wonderful,' he muttered.

'Do you think so?' gasped Will sounding a little like an over-enthusiastic teenage girl.

Halt narrowed his eyes at Will and coming to a quick decision, grabbed his apprentice by the back of his cloak and dragged him into the cabin with a grim expression on his face. Halt studiously ignored the protests his apprentice was shouting and then practically threw Will down in a nearby chair once in the cabin.

'Right,' said Halt marching over to the door and firmly bolting it shut, 'I think that's enough dangerous stunts for one day,' he glowered at Will, 'I'm not having you breaking a leg.'

Will didn't appear to be listening, he was gazing at a far-off point on the wall with a distant expression on his face, softly singing Greybeard Halt to himself.

'And stop singing that!' bellowed Halt.

The singing stopped immediately and Will gazed at Halt his bottom lip trembling, 'Don't you like it Halt?' he asked his voice quivering.

Halt tried not to groan, he was sure Gilan hadn't caused this much trouble...he quickly amended that thought, of course he had.

* * *

><p><strong>Later...<strong>

* * *

><p>Halt sat on his chair which he has propped against the cabin's door, neatly preventing Will from making a break for freedom outside.<p>

His apprentice was sat cross-legged on the floor playing with imaginary rabbits.

Halt sighed.

Hopefully it would wear off soon.

* * *

><p><strong>Even more later...<strong>

* * *

><p>Will skipped around the room signing Greybeard Halt loudly. He seemed to think he was in the middle of a magical glade skipping through beds of flowers.<p>

Halt's eyes were glassy.

Suddenly, Will tripped over his own feet and went flying through the air. He came down on the floor with a solid thump and his head slammed into the floorboards with the solid thunk.

Halt stared at his apprentice.

He wasn't moving.

Hurriedly, the Ranger got to his feet and went over to him. Halt breathed a sigh of relief as he saw Will was breathing, however he'd knocked himself unconscious and had a lovely gash on his scalp.

Halt sighed and awkwardly picked up Will, taking him to his room.

At least he wasn't singing anymore.

* * *

><p><strong>The next morning...<strong>

* * *

><p>Will groaned as he slowly started to wake up, his head was pounding and he felt awful.<p>

'Oh good, you're awake,' said a familiar voice.

Will cautiously opened his eyes, grimacing at the early morning light flooding into his bedroom. As his blurry vision started to clear he saw Halt slumped against his doorway nursing a cup of coffee and looking shattered.

'You look great,' muttered Will thickly.

Halt smiled grimly, 'Well, you don't look so good yourself.'

Will frowned a little as hazy memories of the previous night began to creep back, 'What exactly happened last night?' he asked.

Halt glared at Will, 'Let's just say that you aren't going to be left alone to cook for a while.'

He turned to leave then paused, 'Oh, and the books on the cabinet beside your bed are for homework, I expect you to have memorized it by the time this month is up.'

Will turned gingerly, his head pounding with each movement, a thick, dusty book was lying on his cabinet Will narrowed his eyes as he deciphered the archaic script on the side of the book.

_Mushrooms and their Uses._

* * *

><p><strong>Bleugh, didn't really like this one, anyways, the next few one-shots will feature Gilan instead of Will, hope you have a nice New Year everyone!<strong>


End file.
